The climate is arctic. Temperatures range from -56 to 78 °F. On average, the daily minimum temperature is below freezing 297 days each year. Annual precipitation is light, averaging 5 inches, with 20 inches of snowfall.

The Colville Delta has traditionally been a gathering and trading place for the Inupiat and has always offered good hunting and fishing. The old village of Nuiqsut (Itqilippaa) was abandoned in the late 1940s, because there was no school. The village was resettled in 1973 by 27 families from Barrow. A school, homes, and facilities were constructed by federal agencies in the summer of 1973 and 1974; goods were hauled from Barrow by tractor and snowmachine. The city was incorporated in 1975.

Culture

The majority of the population is Inupiat Eskimo; they practice a traditional subsistence lifestyle.

Air travel provides the only year-round access. The gravel airstrip is owned and operated by the North Slope Borough. Barrow is a primary air hub for surrounding villages. Mail is shipped to Nuiqsut along the Dalton Highway and then flown from Deadhorse. Coastal access for barged fuel and supply deliveries is possible during the ice-free season, which takes place for only a few weeks during the middle of summer. A 60-mile ice road reaches Nuiqsut approximately 5-7 months per year from Deadhorse and Prudhoe Bay, which are connected to the Alaska road system via the Dalton Highway. Additional trails connect Nuiqsut to Anaktuvak Pass (140 miles) and Atqasuk (150 miles). Snowmobiles and ATVs are commonly used for local transportation. Proposed development of the Colville River Road would provide year-round access to eastern portions of the National Petroleum Reserve Area, and would include a spur road to Nuiqsut.